Large parts of Kyiv were plunged into darkness in the early hours of Friday after Russian drones and missiles struck Ukrainian energy facilities, cutting power and water to homes and halting a key metro link across the Dnipro River.

In the latest mass attack targeting the energy system as winter approaches, electricity was interrupted in nine regions and over a million households and businesses were temporarily without power across the country. Ukraine’s prime minister called it one of the heaviest such strikes to date.

In southeastern Ukraine, a seven-year-old was killed when his home was hit and at least 20 people were injured.

In Kyiv, a block of residential buildings in the city centre was damaged by a projectile, while on the left bank of the Dnipro that divides the capital, crowds waited at bus stops with the metro out of action and people filled water bottles at distribution points.

“We didn’t sleep at all,” said Liuba, a pensioner, as she collected water. “From 2.30am there was so much noise. By 3:30 we had no electricity, no gas, no water. Nothing.”

According to Ukraine’s energy ministry, over 800,000 customers lost power in Kyiv because of the attack, with 380,000 still disconnected on Friday afternoon.